Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1887-01-14

t'Nllt anu Gun ~ All NtullbDy anu nnt hllNb
stitch first and then bind and hem. All is
hem, all over inside, so nice and she make
dem 50 nice. But SO dozen is all, and it is
a week for nine and 50 she get not more AS
50, because she is sick and must stop. And
there is the grandfather that is old, and de
kinder and she, and all must live. Rent is
- 30, dat | know, and ! pay for her dis
week 81 60 for bread and tea and potatoes
and milk, and moasses for de kinder ON
bread, and butter little, but no meat II
is de grandfather eat too much, but how
shall one help it, De rest is clothes for ALL
but dere is no shoe for de kinder, and | see
not if dere will be shoe. How shall it be y
In another tenement IA mother and daugh
ter were stitching away as for life, while ON
/ a bed in Il closet-like room adjoining, lay "A
| young girl upon whose cheek the hectic of
| consumption had set its mark, and little
/ child. Its jackets now I'm on, said the
mother 81 thought maybe thered he less
risk in them than clOaks Cloaks seem TO
| give 'eln so much chance to cheat wouldn't
work at all at home, I'd he out doing by the
| day, for had good run Of work but
| there's Maggie sick, and can't leave her.
/ though God knows she gets little good of me
but the knowing I'm here. I'll tell you
what they did 10 me ON cloaks. | worked
/ for s. and Co.. far down ON Broadway, who
and pay 80 a dozen for making. The pay
was regular, hut before I'D had work from
them a month saw they were bound to
make complaints and dock pay whether
there was any fault in the work or not. At
last came my turn carried in some cloaks.
| The foreman tossed them over. It's poor
work. said he: they're not finished prop
crly. You can't he paid for botching.
| There's -. and that too much The work
is the same its always been there's no
hotchiug, ! said hut lac held out the So.
no" | said, if you won't pay fair I'll go to
the Wuman's Protective Union and see what
they'll do His face was black as thunder.
Take your money, he said holding out the
rest, hut you may sing for more work
from this establishment. That didn't trou-
bic me- because was a good hand and
/ knew ] could get work Just below and ]
did that same day-20 cloaks, 10 to he made
AZ go cents apiece and 10 at - cents. When
they were done carried them down. This
/ man was a jew, but there's small difference
if the jew knew best how 10 cheat in the
beginning the Christian caught up with
him long ago The buttons are all ON
wrong" he said; 4 told you 10 set them AN
inch further back Wen have to alter them
every one, and charge you for the time. 1
can take oath they are ON as ! was told to
changed IN change them myself and save
the money At first he would not agree IL
this. but at last he said could come next
morning but one and he'd let me alter them
as a great favor But when / came down
be- said they couldn't wait and had made the
change. and he charged me 50 for it, II was
mo- use to complain. he could swear | had
done the job wrong, and so ! went home
with 81. 10 instead Of Sll for nearly a fort
nights work for Angie and me. changed
places. and su far nobody has locked me:
but doing my best and Angie working a.
steady as do, we cant make over 20 cents
ON jacket. and its short seasons.
Fight years ago painter and his wife,
Of middle age, left Germany for this coun.
try urged to come over by daughter who
had emgrated Immediately after her mnr-
rage The man at once found employment
| at his trade. with high wages they lived IN
comfortable rooms on decent street, and
were able to put money in the savings bank.
Then came the financial troubles of ~ and
81. the fall of wages and lastly an attack
Of painters collie followed 10y slight par
alytic stroke, which left the painter with
the drop hand indicating that his work
ing days were mostly over. Strength, how.
ever. returned for an odd job nov and then,
and the little man accepted his fate cheeri
whereby the leSseuing wages could be eked
out. The bank settled this question by al
most immediate failure a long aud eXpen-
sive illness Of the wife followed, and when
it ended furniture and small valuables of
every sort had been pawned, and they left
the empty rooms for narrower quarters, and
sought work in which all could share. To
add to the complication. the unmarried
daughter, who had place as child's nurse
broke her leg, and became even when able
to walk again, too disabled to return 10 this
work She could run the machine and the
mother was an expert button hole maker
and had already learned to work on cheap
coats and pantaloons, jackets and cloaks
jackets seemed to promise most for in 1894
each one brought the maker 60 cents, button
holes being 81 80 per hundred the presser
l receiving ten cents each and the tnishcr six
cents, these amounts being deducted from
tine price paid on each To save this amount
the husband learned how to press though
his crippled hand can barely grasp the iron,
and often his wife must help him place the
cranped fingers in position; and he stands
there smiling well content Ia add his mite
to the fund For a year their home has
been in a deep basement, where save at
monday. it is impossible to run the machine
without artificial light The rent for two
= rooms, one Of which is dark and unventilat-
ed save from the hall Is - a month. Two
, machines run by mother and daughter stand
as near the window as possible and close by
l is the press-board and the pale but optimis-
. tic little man. who looks proudly at each
seam he lays it open. What are the re
l turns Lisa will give them-the wife whose
p English is still uncertain and into whose
2 gentle, anxious eyes the tears come sudden
, " as she talks Il know not if we shall
I live at ALL she says. For see, we two
, nv Gretchen and I've make but ten IA day
4 Tree dollar; Yes, but you must take from
+ it de button hole an finish and much else
p and it is so shOrt-so short that we can work
? ON them. The season, that is it-six weeks,
two months, maybe; and then pantaloon
! till spring jacket come. See 1t is early
e that we begin-seven, maybe, and all day
we shall sew and sew. We eat no warm
, essen. On table dere is bread, and beer in
pitcher, and cheese today. We sit not
. down, for time goes away So No, we stand
, and eat as We must, and sew more and more.
1 ! Ten jackets To one day--so Gretchen and
t me can make; but we sit always-we "a
e not out 1t is II hours efery day-yes,
D many times l6-we work and work; then
u we fall on bed and sleep, and when we wake
I | again It Is work always. And must stop
!, "A lcetle-not much, but leetle, for my back
| have such pain that fall ON the bed to say,
8 'Ach, Gott is it living to work so in this
rich, free America !" But my man, he is
5 sick always. even if he will laugh. He say
, he must laugh Away for two, because | can
r not For when this work is past it is only
t pantalouns, and, sew SO hard rs we may, It
r. is only five, six pair maybe, for Gretchen
d, and me all day, and that not always. Many
| day we do nothing because they say work
i is dull, and then goes away all that we save
{ before But we need not to ask help-so
e much is good that we work and earn; but
, think | die soon of my pain, and who then
e helps his fingers so stiff to press, or thinks
z how he will ache even when he will laugh
, 1t is because America is best that we come
e but how is il best to die because it is always
G work and no joy, no hope, and never one SC
small stop =
h Are the pictures too dark Remember
. they are from life, and not till they art
e stamped upon the hearts of the people viii
p there come such a demand for remedy IA
IS will not be gansaid Let us look again
a Here is a ROOM clean, if cleanliness be pos
C sble where walls and ceiling and every
= plank and beam reek with fOulness from
! sewer and closet Three women are work
e ing ON overalls the two machines placed
5 directly under the windows to obtain every
e ray of light The room, 10 by ~ feet, witt
. one half the size opening from it, holds 1
a small stove, the inevitable teapot steaminl
II at the back "A table with cups and saucer
}. and loaf of bread still uncut, and a SINAI
l dresser in one corner, in which few dlshe
a are ranged sickly geraniuni grows il
IS an old tomato cana pitltul attempt a
/ adornment. The fnisher talks freely witt
J. the visitor. but her fingers fly busily thu
e while We've 'cmhbed SOS to get ahea'
l. "A littla - she SAYS We were each in a room